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 "Kim Ji-young, Born 1982" - based on a 2016 book of the same
name - opened in South Korea last week and immediately
highlighted divisions within the country over sexism, the
anti-harassment #MeToo movement, and feminism.
The story follows a married woman in her 30s who feels forced by
social circumstances and opinions to give up her work and dreams
in order to raise her young child.
The movie has been No. 1 at the South Korean box office since
opening a week ago and had sold 9.7 billion won ($8.3 million)
in tickets by Sunday, according to the latest data from the
Korean Film Council.
A number of women in the audience were audibly crying at a
screening in a small central Seoul theater on Tuesday.
Seo Mi-jeong, a 23-year-old woman who was among those in tears
during the screening, said the movie seemed less zealously
"feminist" than simply a realistic portrayal of the challenges
women face.
"Although there were some parts that seemed exaggerated for
storytelling, it touched on realities in South Korean society
that keep women of different generations from the life they
wanted to lead," she said.
The movie has highlighted stark gender divides, including the
growing number of young South Korean men who think feminism and
the #MeToo movement have outlived their usefulness.
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"I couldn't empathize with the premise that a woman born in 1982 was
discriminated against when she was growing up," said Kim Won-koo, a
29-year-old man who saw it on opening day. "Many of the situations
seem unrealistic or very, very rare."
Women rated the film an average of 9.5 out of 10 stars on Naver,
South Korea's top web search portal, while men gave it an average of
2.5 stars.
Part of its box office success appears to come from South Korean
women buying tickets in support of a cause without actually going to
the cinema, many social media posts indicate, a practice known in
South Korea as "sending one's soul".
In a survey of 1,000 single South Koreans aged between 19 and 44 by
pollster Realmeter in September, 81.2% of respondents said gender
conflict was a serious issue in South Korea.
South Korea has seen both feminist and men's
"reverse-discrimination" debates grow in recent years as the #MeToo
movement ensnared a number of high-profile political, entertainment,
religious and sports figures accused of harassment or abuse.
(Reporting by Joyce Lee; Editing by Josh Smith and Paul Tait)
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